First Date
by psyscaper
Summary: NIKE - Natalie & Spike get together.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer**: I still don't own much of anything and certainly no part of the awesomeness that is Flashpoint and its characters.

**Author's Note**: First, I have to credit Andorian Ice Princess for sparking my muse with her story "Double Trouble." As the title suggests, it's another date scenario with Natalie and Spike. I was trying to get at Spike's insecurity where dating might be concerned along with a little humor and angst thrown in for good measure. While in my opinion it's clearly not my best work, I'll let you all decide whether it actually works or not. You'll have to let me know. – _**Psy**_

Standing in front of the familiar door, he took a deep breath, letting it out slowly before shifting the bottle he was holding into the crook of his left elbow. _I don't know why I'm so nervous_, he thought to himself. _It's not like I've never been on a date before. Granted, it has been a while._ Besides, Natalie had assured him that her brother would be out tonight, so he didn't have to worry about Sam watching over them. Not that he planned to do anything other than go out for dinner and hopefully spend a quiet evening getting to know his friend's sister. After all, it was just a first date, right? Nothing ever happens on a first date. At least, nothing ever happens to him.

He reached up with his right hand and, after wiping it dry on his jeans, knocked. A minute or so later the door opened to reveal the beautifully blond, superbly tanned and, as far as he was concerned, drop-dead gorgeous woman who had barged into the SRU headquarters just a few days before. And, just like that moment, Michelangelo "Spike" Scarlatti now felt his verbal acuity drop to near zero as he gazed into her deep, blue eyes once again.

"Hey, Spike," Natalie Braddock smiled warmly as she stepped aside and opened the door, inviting him in.

He smiled back at her, his feet seemingly as unable to move as his mouth. "Umm…Hi, uh… Natalie," he finally managed to say.

He forced his feet to move then, stepping quickly inside a few steps before turning back to face her and holding the bottle out to her.

"I, uh, I hope you like wine," he gave her a shy smile.

Natalie smiled as she took the bottle from him. "I do enjoy the occasional glass of wine," she said, "but, I don't drink a lot of it." She looked down at the label.

"Castel del Monte?" she asked. "I don't think I've ever heard of it. Then again," she smiled, "Like I said, I'm not exactly a connoisseur."

Spike smiled, glad for an opportunity to impress her. "Well, this one's a red wine, obviously," he chuckled as he proceeded to tell her everything he knew about the winery, named after a 13the century castle on a hill in the Puglia region of southeastern Italy, and that particular wine, made with the low yield but very high quality Uva di Troia grape.

"Wow, you really know your wine." Natalie was impressed. "I guess being Italian has its advantages, huh?

"Well," replied Spike, "it helps to have an Italian mother who loves to cook and is a walking encyclopedia of Italian history, culture and food. There's no way I could grow up in my mother's house and not learn this stuff."

"I guess I'll just have to make dinner for you sometime," Natalie winked at him as she led the way into the kitchen, placing the wine on the table. "Of course, I'm really bad at remembering which wines go with which foods," she added.

"Well, then you're in luck," smiled Spike. "This particular wine goes well with a wide variety of foods. In fact," he said, "there's not a lot it doesn't go with."

"Great! But, you know what? I don't want to wait. Why don't you open that while I get us a couple of glasses?" she asked as she dug a corkscrew out of a drawer and handed it to him.

"Okay." He took the corkscrew and made short work of opening the bottle before pouring out a half-glass for each of them. Natalie took both glasses and led him over to the sofa.

Half a bottle later found them in each other's arms, lip locked, Natalie having relieved Spike of his leather jacket, which now lay crumpled behind him. Turns out that one of the reasons she had moved to Toronto was to get away from her last relationship. Not that it had been a bad one, she told Spike. But, when she'd found out he was married, by running into him one day with his wife and their two young children, she realized she needed a fresh start. Natalie knew pursuing Spike was probably not a great idea until she figured out how she'd missed all the signs from the last one. But, she'd never had a whole lot of self-control when it came to this sort of thing and, truth be told, Spike seemed pretty down-to-earth and safe.

So there they were. Spike, his back pressed into the corner of the sofa with Natalie half draped over him, his arms around her waist, his hands stroking her back as he kissed her. Natalie had one arm wrapped around his waist, her hand on the small of his back while the other carded through his short-cropped hair before moving down to stroke his cheek and then moving to the back of his neck.

Then, without warning, Natalie swung her leg over his lap so that she straddled him on the couch. Both of her hands went to his head as her tongue took control of his mouth with a force he hadn't expected. His eyes flew open for a split second in surprise, but he quickly closed them and tightened his arms around her.

_Michelangelo! What do you think you're doing?_ A voice in Spike's head piped up, admonishing him. _Are you forgetting that this is a first date? Tonsil Hockey is not usually a first date activity you know! _Spike pictured a tiny version of himself complete with halo sitting on his right shoulder and taking him to task.

_Oh, leave him alone!_ A second disembodied voice answered the first. _Maybe it's not a first date. Maybe it's just a one-night stand. _This version Spike pictured on his other shoulder with horns and a pitchfork and he mentally cursed his Catholic upbringing.

_A one-night stand? Really, Michelangelo?_ Angel Spike shook its little head. _Since when do you do one-night stands? _

_Hey! Lay off him, Dog!_ Devil Spike waved the pitchfork at its alter ego. _Ain't nothing wrong with a little woop-woop!_ Spike might have wondered why his devilish side was using street slang if he hadn't been so distracted by Natalie's tongue in his throat.

Once again, Angel Spike shook its head. _But, Michelangelo, how will you ever respect her in the morning? How will you respect yourself?_

Spike growled in frustration at the conscience driven mental aerobics. Of course, Natalie thought it meant something else and she immediately ground her pelvis into his.

"Mmm…" she moaned suggestively. "I think I found something else besides your hair that gets spiky," Her hands went to his waist and made short work unbuckling his belt before unbuttoning his jeans.

_Respect?_ Devil Spike responded with incredulity. _Man, this ain't about respect! It's about getting laid, fool!_

_Why does everything have to be about the physical?_ Angel Spike asked. _He has emotional needs, too, you know!_

_Emotional needs!_ chortled Devil Spike. _Give me a break! Let him take care of his physical needs first. Besides, when's the last time he was this close to getting any from a beautiful woman? Jamaica?_

With that last word, the manifestations of the two sides of his conscience disappeared and Spike was left with different mental image. He was in the arms of another woman, a dark-haired beauty this time with warm, friendly eyes and an easy smile. He pictured the two of them on a beach, listening to the rolling waves lapping over the warm sand. The thought of rocking waves took him back to yet another place and time and he immediately froze, his eyes snapping open.

Natalie felt him tense beneath her. "Relax, Spike," she tried to reassure him. "I told you, Sam's spending the night at a friend's. It's not like he's going to walk in on us."

Just at that moment, though, they heard the sound of a key being pushed into the lock and the deadbolt turning. Shocked blue eyes looked at equally shocked brown eyes before Spike's hands went to Natalie's waist and he pushed her off his lap. He felt his face warming to a nice crimson blush as he frantically tried to button his jeans and re-buckle his belt. Deciding he didn't have time to do both, he settled for working on the belt. He wasn't able to get it through the belt loops though and just managed to pull his shirttail down over it as his SRU teammate and Natalie's brother, Sam Braddock, walked through the door.

Spike jumped to his feet feeling much like a teenager caught making out by his girlfriend's father.

Natalie wiped her lips looking annoyed while Spike's face had turned beet red. He looked decidedly embarrassed and somewhat disheveled, his hair going every which way and he had lipstick on his face and shirt collar.

Taking in the scene, Sam realized he'd just interrupted the two of them. At least he had the decency to look embarrassed himself.

"Sorry, guys," he winced sheepishly. "I forgot something I wanted to take to…" he hazarded a quick glance at Spike before finishing, "…my friend's.

"I'll be out of your way in a second." He said as he made his way to his bedroom and was back a couple of minutes later. Spike had grabbed his jacket and Natalie was trying to convince him to stay.

"Spike, you don't have to go," she told him. "Sam's leaving right now," she glared at her brother. "Aren't you, Sam?"

Nodding his head in agreement, Sam replied, "Yep, I'm gone. Spike," he said, "you can stay as long as you want."

Spike shook his head, for some reason unable to look either of them in the eyes. "No," he said, "you know what, I've, uh, I've gotta go. I forgot there's something I've got to do."

He stepped around the two of them to the door. Opening it, he mumbled an apology to Natalie before muttering a quick, "See you tomorrow," to Sam and was out the door before either could react.

**A/N**: Okay, so I just made up the part about Natalie and the married guy. I blame my muse. As for her aggressiveness, I just get the feeling that Natalie would go after whatever she wants while Spike strikes me as the kind of guy who would take his time with matters of the heart. IDK. Let me know what you think. _**- Psy**_


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer**: I still don't own much of anything, much less any part of Flashpoint. I do have a cat named Spike, though. :P

**Author's Note**: I decided I still wanted Wordy in this one, so this is set between 'The Better Man' and 'A Day in the Life.' I'm not too happy with the way this one came out, but my muse seems to have deserted me for now, so I'll have to make do. Not much action, but a little more speculation as to what makes Spike tick and a bit of confrontation of sorts between him and Sam. Let me know what you think. Thanks, _**Psy**_

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><p>Brother and sister stood in surprised silence as the door closed behind their mutual friend. Natalie was the first to recover after a minute or so. She turned and leveled an angry glare at Sam.<p>

"Thanks, Sam!"

"What?" he shrugged his shoulders. "Look, I'm sorry, Nat! I forgot to grab…"

"What, condoms?" finished Natalie, her lips curling snidely. Sam responded with a look of 'what the hell?'

"You couldn't just go to a drug store and buy some more?" She shook her head. "It's not like you and Jules won't use them up anyway, probably sooner rather than later," she snapped.

Now her brother shook his head. "What is your problem?" demanded Sam. It took all he had not to yell the question at her.

"You scared him off, Sam!"

"How did I scare him off? You heard me tell him he could stay!" he argued. "Besides, Spike is _not_ afraid of me!"

Natalie sighed, crossed her arms over her chest and looked pityingly at her brother. "I wouldn't be too sure of that, bro."

"Whatever," muttered Sam as he reached for the doorknob. "Jules is waiting for me. I'll see you tomorrow," he said as he, too, exited the apartment. He punched the down arrow button at the elevator a bit harder than he meant to and shook his head. He was a little surprised not to see Spike waiting for the elevator as it usually took forever to get there.

'_Why the hell would Spike be afraid of me?'_ he wondered to himself as he waited. When the elevator doors opened, he stepped in and punched the button for the ground floor, mulling over the question as he slowly descended.

Spike sat in his car, his head down. '_What the hell is _wrong_ with me?'_ he thought to himself. He let out a low groan as he started banging his head on the steering wheel. He wasn't sure if he was mad at himself for a) leaving so abruptly, b) letting the fact that Sam was Natalie's brother get to him so much, or c) allowing his emotions to take over so quickly, both in moving so fast with Natalie in the first place and in stopping him just as fast. Despite his upbringing, Spike wasn't exactly a prude. He'd had his share of one-night stands, though he rarely went looking for them. They usually came about due to stressors mostly beyond his control. Like a particularly tough day at work when he just knew his father would start in on him about his job as soon as he walked in the door. Moreover, he usually went into those situations with his eyes wide open and his heart guarded closely. He'd had no such intentions with Natalie. He really did want to take his time and get to know her. Maybe it would work out, maybe it wouldn't, but he didn't want to jinx it by moving too fast.

Besides, he would never knowingly do anything to jeopardize his friendship with Sam. All of his teammates had stepped up after Lou died, making sure Spike knew they were there for him whenever he needed them. Lou had been his best friend, and while no one could ever take his place, Sam had gone out of his way to see that Spike didn't withdraw completely, even going so far as to show up at Spike's house unannounced once and insist they go out clubbing. Spike knew his buddy already had a girlfriend, even if he didn't know who it was, so it was obvious that Sam was only doing it for his benefit. As much as he had groused and complained about it, Spike had been grateful for the distraction. His father wasn't speaking to him at that point and the thought of sitting in that tension-filled house had been more than he could bear. The fact that he'd met a good-looking woman who ended up taking him home for a night of mind blowing carnal pleasure hadn't exactly hurt his ego either.

Still, the few solitary nights spent with women he didn't even know did nothing to assuage his guilt and pain. Not just the guilt he still felt about Lou's death. Intellectually, he knew there was nothing he could've done to prevent it, yet he still felt responsible. But, it wasn't just about Lou. Unless he was drunk, whenever he slept with a woman, or as it happened tonight, if he even made out with one, his thoughts invariably would turn to his high school crush, Bridget. While they'd never dated in high school – he had been way too shy to talk to her then – they had run into each other in Jamaica. Spike and Lou had been vacationing together when Bridget had seen them on the beach and had come over to talk to Spike. The two of them had ended up spending the next three days together. When he thought of the time they'd spent reconnecting he still was struck by just how right and perfect it had felt to be with her. But, now those thoughts would inevitably lead to thoughts of that first day back at work after Jamaica and in his mind's eye he would see Lou standing there on that landmine. And even now the sheer helplessness Spike had felt as he realized the one sure way to render the mine harmless had been sabotaged was like a knife in his chest. He had promised Bridget he would call her sometime, but he never could bring himself to dial her number. His memories of her were now inextricably intertwined with those of the worst moment of his life. It seemed no matter how hard he tried, he just couldn't move on, he couldn't get past it.

Of course, none of that had anything to do with Natalie, he reminded himself as he jabbed the key into the ignition and started the engine. He shook his head and thought, '_Maybe I need therapy!' _With a quick look over his shoulder, he carefully edged the car out into the street and slowly made his way home.

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><p>The next day, Spike trudged slowly into the SRU locker room. He was still nervous about what Sam would have to say about what he'd walked in on last night. To his relief, the blond sniper was nowhere to be seen. In fact, Kevin 'Wordy' Wordsworth was the only one there. Spike nodded to the team's resident hand-to-hand combat expert and exchanged pleasantries as he changed into his workout clothes. It had only been about a week since Wordy had told the team that he had Parkinson's and Spike was still having a hard time wrapping his head around it. He just couldn't believe one of the toughest guys he'd ever known was going to be taken down by a neurological disease.<p>

Spike was already on the stationary bike with his earphones on and his iPod playing when Sam showed up followed a few minutes later by Jules Callaghan. Spike was oblivious to the scrutiny team sergeant, Greg Parker, directed at the two officers, though he did hear Wordy say something about them being late. Not wanting to deal with Sam right then, Spike chose to ignore it and went on peddling without so much as a glance in his direction.

Two hours later they were all in the locker rooms changing into uniform. Spike again studiously avoided looking at Sam and only vaguely listened to the banter of his teammates. He could almost feel Sam's eyes boring through the back of his head and he swallowed reflexively, wondering again just what was wrong with him. It wasn't as if he'd done anything wrong. Then again, he could only assume Sam was protective of his sister. It was only natural, after all.

Sam tried to get Spike's attention. He really didn't want to discuss things in front of their teammates, but it seemed to him that Spike was doing everything he could to avoid him. When the bomb tech refused to look at him or even acknowledge him, Sam decided to wait for everyone else to leave the locker room. Then he'd be able to talk to Spike one on one. Hedging his bets, he still changed quickly in case his friend tried to duck out first. As it turned out he had read Spike right and was quick to follow the Italian-Canadian into the hallway before the others had finished changing.

"Spike!" he called out. He was taken aback when his friend stopped and hung his head, but didn't turn around to face him.

"What, Sam?" asked Spike in a low monotone. He steeled himself for the dressing down he just knew was coming.

Sam walked around to face his friend, shocked to see the anxious look in Spike's eyes; the brown doe-eyes that flitted first left, then right and then down at his feet, but never managed to look him in the eyes. Sam's mouth dropped in disbelief.

"Nat was right!" he exclaimed softly. "You're afraid of me."

He shook his head. "Why?" he asked. "What do you think I'm gonna do?"

His teammate didn't answer, but simply shook his head. His eyes met Sam's for a split second before breaking contact again.

"Spike?"

Closing his eyes, the bomb tech finally responded. "I'm not afraid of you, Sam. It's just…" he said, his voice trailing off into silence as he shook his head again, unable to express what he was thinking. What was he going to say? 'I know you don't want me dating your sister?' 'I know you'll kick my ass if I hurt her?' He shrugged.

Sam waited a couple of minutes. When Spike didn't continue, he tried again.

"Okay, you're not afraid of…" he trailed off as Ed arrived with a hearty greeting for the two of them.

"Spike! Samtastic! Are we ready for another fun-filled day in the SRU?" he smiled at his two subordinates.

"You bet!" Sam replied without taking his eyes off his friend.

"Always!" Spike managed to throw a cheeky grin Ed's way, grateful to avoid the pointed look on Sam's face even for a brief second. Ed sensed the tension between the two officers and gave them each a close look before deciding to let it go for now. With a wave, he entered the locker room just as Wordy and the sarge exited.

"Briefing room, five minutes!" warned Parker. He nodded to the two younger men standing in the hallway.

"Copy that, Boss," they replied in unison. The two did their best to appear nonchalant, but they didn't fool anyone. Wordy and the boss exchanged a quick glance, eyebrows raised in puzzlement. Instead of pressing, though, they continued on toward the briefing room without comment.

As soon as the hallway cleared, Sam tried again. "Okay, so you're not afraid of me. So what's the problem?" he asked. "You didn't have to leave last night; I told you that."

Spike shrugged and shook his head. "I told you guys, I forgot that I had something I had to do. That's all," he insisted.

Sam nodded. "Anyone ever tell you you're a lousy liar, Spike?" His question met with silence again and he was forced to try a different tack.

"You know, Natalie thinks I scared you off and frankly, the way you're acting this morning, avoiding me, not looking at me, I'm thinking maybe she was right."

Spike shook his head miserably. "Look, Sam," said, "I'm sorry. It's not you. It's not your sister. It's me, okay? I'm the one who's screwed up!"

"Spike, buddy, you didn't screw up," Sam tried to reassure his friend, though for the life of him he couldn't figure out what the problem was.

"As for me, I don't really have a problem with you dating my sister." This was only partially true, though. While he truly wanted to see both his sister and his friend happy, Sam knew that if Spike and Nat started dating, the chances of his and Jule's relationship coming to light increased exponentially. Sam had no idea how to avoid it. Still, he couldn't exactly forbid the two of them from seeing each other.

"You're both adults. You can do whatever you want. Just go careful, okay, buddy?" he said.

Spike took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "I'm not going to lie to you, Sam," he said before looking his friend in the eye and holding his gaze for the first time that day. "I like your sister, not that I really know her. And you've gotta know that I'd never knowingly hurt her."

That brought a smile and chuckle from Sam. "What, you think I'm worried about _you_ hurting _her_?" he asked, slapping the other man on the shoulder. "Trust me; I'm more worried about what she could do to you!"

Before he could continue, Wordy appeared at the top of the short flight of stairs leading to the main area and the briefing room.

"Sam! Spike!" he hollered. "You guys coming or what?"

The two younger men looked up at him sheepishly and started moving in his direction. As they started up the stairs, Sam looked at his friend. "So, we good?" he asked.

Spike turned to look at him and nodded. "Yeah, buddy," he said with a slight smile. "We're good."

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><p>Thanks for reading and by all means, please review and let me know what you think! <em><strong>- Psy<strong>_


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